It seems like the Internet is changing every six months, doesn’t it? The moment you have a marketing strategy worked out, it is thrown into flux by another Google update or market trend.

Right now, that market trend is toward mobile technology. This shouldn’t come as a shock. In fact, I bet you’ve checked your phone since you started reading this article, and we’re only four sentences in!

Mobile technology has significantly changed the landscape of online marketing. More homeowners are using their mobile phones to search for roofing services than ever before. But between the rapid changes in homeowner behavior, the explosion of mobile devices and the intense local competition most roofing companies have, keeping up with the mobile world can seem daunting, if not impossible.

Fear not! We are going to tackle the five ways mobile technology is changing the residential roofing business, and discuss how each one is going to help you win more business from online homeowners.

1. MOBILE is no longer a millennial phenomenon. It was only a few years ago when we were shrugging off the mobile movement. Mobile obsession was primarily a thing for teens and twenty-somethings, right?

Not anymore. Since mobile devices have become more affordable and accessible, homeowners of all ages are turning to their phones when they have an urgent need, such as a repair or roofing emergency. In fact, that is the first device they turn to.

For homeowners over 50, mobile phones are the central device in their daily lives, and they are likely using them to make phone calls and submit web forms. And while home ownership among millennials is rising, a hefty number of leads tend to come from the 50-plus crowd. Adapting to mobile technology is going to help you drive leads across all demographics.

2. GOOGLE has welcomed mobile with open arms. Google tells us that more than half of the queries on their search engine now come from mobile, and it is only going to increase. As a result, they have revamped their pay-per-click (PPC) advertising to reflect the immediacy of mobile searches. Folks at the top, as they say, get the best fruit.

In PPC campaigns, roofing companies need to optimize for mobile. This requires more than checking the “Mobile” box in your ad campaign. You will want to use extensions that make it easier for homeowners to call from their mobile devices and determine how close you are to their location.

Simply stated: homeowners are making their roofing choices at the top of Google’s mobile search pages. To get to the top, you need to have mobile-optimized ads that appeal to mobile users. Being at the top of the page is one of those lead drivers that growing roofing companies cannot do without.

3. TAP-TO-CALL is exactly what homeowners are looking for. In the time-constrained world that we’re in, Google offers homeowners a number of specific roofing choices immediately. However, being at the top of the page means nothing if a person can’t get in touch with you.

Homeowners with roofing needs want to resolve the issue as soon as possible. That’s why it’s important to have a tap-to-call option on your website pages and ads. But, that is only half the battle.

In home improvement, excellent phone work is still necessary. There is nothing more frustrating to homeowners than going to a roofing contractor’s website, liking what they see, dialing the number … and then getting no answer. Or a long hold time. Or going straight to voicemail. Or not getting a prompt call back.

All of these non-responses drive the homeowner to do the same thing: call your competitor.

Mobile has made it easier than ever to go down a list, contacting company after company until they get a response. Roofing companies that want to grow and scale need to have tap-to-call options and strong phone practices to make the most of their mobile presence.

4. RESPONSIVE WEBSITES are more than the future—they’re the industry standard. Mobile is now a fact of life for roofing companies. And if your company’s website requires customers to zoom in on teeny tiny letters, they’re going to get frustrated and move on.

At the very least, every company needs to have a responsive website that accommodates all sizes and models of mobile phones. Responsive sites are Google-friendly and they display in ways that are easiest for homeowners to navigate and understand.

If you’re not sure if your website is responsive, try to access the URL on your mobile phone. Can you see the words at a glance? Do you have to slide around to find a phone number? If so, you probably need to upgrade to a responsive design.

Having a responsive website boosts your site’s usability, making it more likely that you’ll be there when a homeowner searches for roof replacement. Plus, customers in the 50-plus bracket will sincerely appreciate text that is easy to read.

5. MOBILE WEB FORMS are your key to connection, so get it right. Homeowners are embracing web forms in greater and greater numbers. And it’s easy to see why. With busy routines and packed schedules, many homeowners simply have limited time to solve their roofing issues. A web form shows the homeowner how responsive you are and how much you value their inquiry.

That is why more and more roofing businesses are turning to online appointment scheduling in their web forms. Letting the homeowner select an appointment time has a number of benefits. First, homeowners who can schedule their own appointments are far more likely to complete a web form. Second, it gives you a competitive advantage over other forms that do not offer scheduling. It’s simply more convenient and gives the homeowners a greater feeling of control.

Also, self-schedulers are much less likely to become no-shows. As we all know, no-shows are frustrating, costly and a big headache. Letting the homeowner commit to a time that works also shows that your easy to work with and responsive to their needs.

Lastly, web forms are a big hit with Millennials. The 35 and under crowd loves to schedule everything online— haircuts, spin classes, restaurant reservations, vacations, hotel stays. You name it, they are reserving it online. This, too, is becoming an ingrained behavior among the next generation of homeowners, so optimizing your web forms is going to become even more important in the years to come.

Dominate the Mobile Market

Many roofing companies are frustrated with the online world. Roofing is already a very local business, which makes it challenging to grow and expand. By embracing the mobile world, roofing companies can stand out and beat the competition. And for roofers looking for replacement leads, it’s 100 percent worth the time and expense to do it right.

While the mobile world is complex and somewhat confusing, so is the rest of running a business. And I’m guessing your company is already doing that well. If you embrace these mobile trends, you’ll learn how to master them and drive more leads–and more business–to your company.

MetLoop is interrupting the status quo of weather forecasting by utilizing a military grade weather alert system; turned enterprise. The key feature of the software system is its ability to provide severe weather alerts at specified locations. The Dallas based company is also providing consumers, government agencies, local municipalities and businesses with an on-call meteorologist service that pinpoints real-time weather forecasting (30-60 minutes in advance) to any mobile device. Leading the charge is tech mogul, David Carlson, MetLoop’s co-founder and CEO.

The site-specific U.S. meteorological data will be available for both consumers and resellers using a cloud based software-as-a-service (SaaS) business model. The alert-based software will be provided across multiple mobile devices, scaling opportunities across multiple market verticals. The data boasts a 95% accuracy being developed from MetLoop’s Weather Command Center, in Fort Walton Beach, Florida.

MetLoop is launching a consumer-friendly initiative utilizing a platform in order to inform its subscribers about any case of severe weather alert. This includes providing the information across all commercially available IoT (internet-of-things) devices. CEO, David Carlson, says, “We are providing severe weather alerts, that are not currently available through the National Weather Service, to the consumer and a safe network where we can actually track people via their phone, via their car, and even within their homes to give them as much advance warning if a tornado is coming.”

MetLoop rolls out three new subscription-based software product lines in fall 2016, including a mobile app, customizable desktop software, and enterprise interfaces. MetLoop is working to provide the market with content on new types of technology required to secure transmission of time-sensitive weather data.

OneSite Mobile, a mobile app from CertainTeed Roofing partner HailStrike, will help credentialed roofing contractors in storm-affected areas with mobile access to hail storm data. With site-specific reporting the app helps roofing contractors locate storm-torn roofs without needing to piece together information from several sources.

Available at a discount for CertainTeed Roofing credentialed contractors, OneSite Mobile allows access to hail reporting data from a mobile device. The only input needed is a property address, which can be either automatically geolocated or entered manually. The app then finds hail storm activity for that address since January 2011, including size, duration, storm speed, storm direction and probability of hail activity, and creates a report in minutes.

Since 2011, HailStrike has offered hail reports. The company uses interactive maps to help roofing contractors track hailstorm paths throughout the continental U.S. HailStrike offers CertainTeed ShingleMasters, SELECT ShingleMasters, Silver Star Contractors and Gold Star Contractors access to this information in the field.

Roofing contractors with HailStrike tracking have access to storm tracking software that trails the storm and includes the size of hail. Those with AniSwath have access to a colorized and animated hail swath map. It is a tool that provides the footprint of a hailstorm for contractors, including probability of severe hail and duration of a storm. The OneSite tool provides information for hail activity at exact locations. With OneSiteMobile, roofing contractors can see the storm’s strength, speed, direction, probability and duration, plus the app allows access to the hail reports at the specified location.

iRoofing introduces its roofing and siding simulator. It enables the user to view different materials on the same roof and change the house completely by changing the roof and siding materials on the same photo.

Simulator improvements:

Make photos more realistic—perspective has been added to accommodate for pitch and shade.

The Asphalt Roofing Manufacturers Association has converted its popular Residential Asphalt Roofing Manual into an eBook that is available in all major online retail bookstores.

The Asphalt Roofing Manufacturers Association has converted its popular Residential Asphalt Roofing Manual into an eBook that is available in all major online retail bookstores. It can be accessed on smartphones, tablets, the Kindle from Amazon and Nook eReader from Barnes and Noble. An eBook format allows users to bookmark key pages or diagrams, take notes and change the font size for better viewing. In addition, the print-on-demand version of the Residential Asphalt Roofing Manual, which was updated earlier this year, allows the publication to ship straight from the printing press to the customer at a reduced cost. ARMA also is offering discounts for bulk purchases. Purchase ARMA publications.

The National Roofing Contractors Association has launched the NRCA app, which offers members free access to NRCA’s electronic publications. Members can download the NRCA app from the Apple App Store, Google Play or Windows Store and access the following NRCA publications:

• The NRCA Roofing Manual: Membrane Roof Systems—2015

The National Roofing Contractors Association has launched the NRCA app, which offers members free access to NRCA’s electronic publications.

Snagajob, an hourly employment marketplace for job seekers, announced the release of its free mobile app for iOS and Android, designed to meet the unique needs of those seeking to hire construction workers, builders or contractors for hourly employment.

Snagajob, an hourly employment marketplace for job seekers, announced the release of its free mobile app for iOS and Android, designed to meet the unique needs of those seeking to hire construction workers, builders or contractors for hourly employment. The free app makes the job posting/hiring process easier by using a smartphone’s or tablet’s video, photo and GPS technology. Employers can currently post jobs for free via the app’s free trial promotion.

Snagajob offers a new way for employers to find and manage applicants on their mobile device. With Snagajob, employers can conveniently use their mobile device to:

Access and review applications for each job posting and quickly see their availability and qualifications

Find qualified prospects in their area and then reach out via phone or email and encourage them to apply

Easily rank/sort applicant and “star” the applicants they want to interview and note the ones they are not interested in.

The app’s “Video Apply” feature allows employers to view a short clip that candidates can include with their application and lets them gauge the personality fit and enthusiasm of applicants before scheduling an interview, thus saving time and energy for both job seekers and employers.

Snagajob is currently used by thousands of employers across the country across a wide range of vertical markets including retail, food service, transportation, hospitality, child care and more.

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March/April 2019

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Roofing is a national publication that unravels, investigates and analyzes how to properly design, install and maintain a roof system. Through the voices of professionals in the field, Roofing’s editorial provides a unique perspective.